NEET 2016: SC to decide on state-level common counselling for medical seats

The Supreme Court (SC) will soon decide whether there should be common centralised counselling in a state for admission to medical and dental colleges after the National Eligibility Cum Entrance Test (NEET) is held. The apex court had earlier ruled in favour of NEET - the one and only entrance examination for all undergraduate medical courses in India. The exam applied to all government, public, private and deemed colleges.

The hearing on state-wise centralised counselling session will begin on Monday by the apex court. A five-judge bench headed by Justice AR Dave will take the decision. Both Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra have moved to SC stating that centralised counselling process will benefit aspirants who just need to attend one session instead of multiple counselling sessions. SC's final decision will have a bearing on medical admissions in other states also.

Last week, the University Grants Commission (UGC) issued a notification asking all Deemed to be Universities to admit medical aspirants in MBBS/BDS courses solely on the basis of NEET 2016 merit list. The notice further stated that all deemed universities will be a part of common counselling for admission to medical colleges, which will be conducted by state or central government, based on marks obtained in NEET 2016. In case counselling is not being held, then the admission process should be made transparent and conducted purely on the basis of merit.

Currently, medical aspirants end up paying anywhere between Rs 30,000 to Rs 50,000 while appearing for multiple counselling sessions. If the SC approves for a single counselling session, candidates will pay just Rs 1,000 for counselling.